Most Valued
by I. B. Creeper
Summary: The whole situation was set up for this outcome. Tseng was always by his side. He was Rufus's protector. The man was gorgeous. No small wonder Rufus had fallen quite thoroughly in love with his top Turk. M/M, WIP, Yaoi


AN: Man, this one really kicked my ass! It took me something like 5 months to finally get this finished... I don't know why I was having so much trouble with it.

Fun stuff will be in the second chapter. Stick around for it! :P Hopefully it won't take so long to complete. Self-beta'd, so all fuck-ups are mine.

I am in no way, shape, or form associated with the makers of or the series of Final Fantasy, and I obviously don't own it. This is written purely for kicks, and I'm not making money off of it.

* * *

**Chapter 1: Avoidance**

"That was good work, everyone. ShinRa thanks you for your service. Now, off with you! This has been a rough day for all of us, so go enjoy yourselves. Everyone is excused from their duties for the rest of the night."

Weary but lighthearted cheers came from all directions as Rufus handed the microphone to some tech hand he didn't even know the name of and stepped down from the stage, absently fixing his tie with one hand. He kept the benevolent look on his face all the way until the executive elevator, shaking hands and nodding approval as needed. But as soon as those metal doors shut, leaving him blissfully alone, the blond sagged slightly against the wall and ran a hand through his hair with a sigh. "Shit..."

He hadn't been lying in his little congratulatory speech- everyone **had** worked ridiculously hard, including himself. There had been a fault in the computer system's security found which was acting as a back door for anyone who cared to look at ShinRa's files, somehow unnoticed by the lab techs for months. That was completely unacceptable, so Rufus had promptly fired the lot of them and hired new ones to deal with the crisis that followed. Finally, the system was fixed and everyone could go home.

Rufus didn't even want to _think_ about all the time he'd spent running from one end of the building to the other, up and down the elevators, even using the stairs when the elevators were too crowded, just so some grunt or other could get him to sign a paper or two to keep the process moving. It was times like this that made him hate being the head of such a large company as ShinRa- nothing could get done without him personally approving it. Of course, there were other times where that sense of absolute control over something so large was the only thing that he had to be cheerful about...

The blond let out a gusty sigh as the elevator peeled back its doors to the top floor which was, so predictably, his apartments in this monstrous building. _Talk about bringing your work home with you,_ he thought mirthlessly as he stepped out onto the plush carpet of the waiting room, swiped his card on a scanner, and leaned forward to let the iris scanner read his eyes. When a woman's voice politely asked for the password, he scowled and answered "Defenestration." That same automated voice welcomed him back and the door to his parlor opened.

As soon as that white, steel-enforced door closed behind him, he went straight to the wet bar, poured out a few fingers of whiskey, and downed it without a thought. When that was gone, he poured some more. After that, he was finally able to relax a bit. The blond man sat down on a pristine white couch, and his mind wandered to the door's new password.

He was almost positive Reno was the one to come up with it- it was so utterly _him_- but Rufus would never know for sure. The key word was changed once a week, and the new one was only decided the day of to limit the chance of it getting into the hands of any of Rufus's enemies. The highest, most trusted employees of ShinRa were given the duty of coming up with a word that wouldn't easily be discovered, and for some reason Reno had made it onto that list. A wonder, considering his habitual lateness, his occasional disobedience, and his endless supply of snarky comments. Was it odd that, considering all of those things, the asinine redhead and his solemn partner were of the very limited few that Rufus actually placed trust in?

Actually, there was only one above them on the list of people he believed in... that one, calm presence in his life, who he could always depend on. Vaguely sinister, always mysterious, but loyal to a fault. The one who'd even taken a bullet for him when a terrorist had ambushed him and his escorts at a benefit gala, shot the terrorist between the eyes from 40 feet away with a wounded arm, and refused to go to the hospital until he'd had a chance to chew out the idiots who'd somehow managed to miss the assassin's gun when they'd searched him.

Tseng. That cool, composed entity who simultaneously scared him nearly to death and yet made him feel so utterly protected.

He wasn't supposed to feel this way- their relationship should have been strictly that of employer and long time employee, but every time Rufus let himself relax, he'd catch himself contemplating that beautiful, exotic face... those cool eyes... That perfectly toned body. It really wasn't his fault, all things considered. The whole situation was set up for this outcome. Tseng was always by his side. He was Rufus's protector. The man was gorgeous.

No small wonder Rufus had fallen quite thoroughly in love with his top Turk.

No small wonder that, considering how thoroughly in love he was, Rufus was doing all he could to make sure he was never alone with his top Turk. He was the employer, Tseng was the employee. Granted, his most valued employee, but that didn't change the fact that the man was on his payroll. These feelings... They were inappropriate at best and taboo at worst. He had to squash them down before they got out of hand. After all, how in the world could he expect Tseng to return his feelings, when every day he forced the Wutaian to risk his life for him? If anything, the man probably hated him...

He knocked back the rest of his whiskey with a sigh before hauling himself to his feet. He slipped out of the suit jacket and let it fall back on the couch, his hands absently loosening his tie. He knew he should get some sleep... but there were just too many thoughts bouncing around in his head, a large number of which were about Tseng. He'd finally resolved to go take a shower when a knock came on his door. Rufus's shoulders sagged, knowing whatever had brought someone to his door after he'd dismissed everyone most likely was some urgent business matter. Trying to cover up his disappointment, he called out. "Come in."

The door across the room swung open, and of all people, Tseng entered. Rufus inwardly cursed. This was exactly the sort of situation he'd been trying to avoid! "I thought I told everyone to go home."

"Forgive me my frankness, sir, but you know perfectly well that _someone_ needed to stay behind as your bodyguard." Came the remote, blunt reply. Tseng never was one to beat around the bush. It was one of the many qualities that drew Rufus to him, when everyone else in his life had forsaken the truth in favor of convenient lies.

"You could have assigned someone else to the post."

"Would you have preferred someone else?"

"..."

"After all, I _am_ the best in the industry. One might wonder why someone might choose a different bodyguard when the best is standing right before them." There was something unmistakably smug about that deep voice, and Rufus had the slightly unnerving feeling that the Wutaian was mocking him. Tseng's gaze was centered fully on him, those dark eyes giving away nothing of what the man was feeling. The Turk took a few steps further into the room, coincidentally putting him in closer proximity to Rufus. A wave of heat spread through the blond's body as the object of his attraction came nearer and nearer.

His heart. Oh, God. He couldn't breathe. His heart was beating out a panicked staccato against his ribs, and all he could do was stand there as Tseng came closer and closer. There was a scant inch between them when the taller man came to a halt, looking down at the President of ShinRa who was currently hyperventilating, blue eyes wide in shock. A slight smile tugged at Tseng's lips and he leaned forward, looming over the blond as he whispered, formality left by the wayside.

"Have you been avoiding me, Rufus?"


End file.
